Christmas comes early for some in sports world (Hicks)

Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III shows his Superman socks at a press conference after he received the Heisman Trophy on Dec. 10, 2011. (Associated Press/Craig Ruttle)

MOBILE, Alabama -- It starts with the list. Before Christmas shopping can start, everyone has to make a list, according to who has been naughty and nice in their world, and so the Christmas Club money can be used as effectively as possible.

Some gift ideas come easy; others not as much. But you don't want to leave out anyone who is important in your life.

And so, you make a list.

With Santa Claus making his way to town soon, here's a list of people in sports who will not be needing a Christmas gift. They have already received a big gift this year:

SEC Commissioner Mike Slive: Slive has done a terrific job for the league, but this football season has to stand out. The BCS national championship game is an all-SEC affair. There may be no greater seasonal gift. Not only is the SEC assured it will run its string of national titles to six, but the league collects two BCS title game checks. Ho, ho, ho.

Makers of Superman socks (complete with red cape):Robert Griffin III isn't just a Heisman Trophy winner to these folks, he is Superman. All Griffin had to do was reveal the socks in a pre-Heisman Trophy ceremony interview, and the socks sold out via online sales in just hours. Without an assist from Griffin, they would still be stacked up in a warehouse somewhere.

BCS title-game ticket office: These employees were to start Christmas vacation just a couple of hours after the teams for this year's game were announced. Alabama's football fan base is as passionate and loyal as any in the country, especially when it comes to attending bowls (and buying bowl souvenirs), and so tickets didn't last long. One of the few that equals the passion of Alabama's fan base? LSU's fan base. Equally as passionate, equally as supportive, equally as crazy.

Anaheim Angels: Two words -- Albert Pujols. It's hard to imagine a player who provides the kind of instant offense Pujols can offer. OK, so a 10-year deal for a quarter of a billion bucks might be a tad long and much, but hey, baseball owners and others have never figured out how to control finances when it comes to attaining players. When they tried, it was called collusion and they still came out on the wrong end of the fight.

Albert Pujols: Two words -- Anaheim Angels.

Arkansas State: The Red Wolves' opening came at the same time Gus Malzahn was apparently ready to make a move. He left a nice chunk of change on the table to take the ASU head-coaching position, saying it was the right job at the right time. Malzahn may be presenting gifts to other Sun Belt Conference coaches; his reported $850,000 salary is tops in the league and other Sun Belt coaches will likely be seeking a raise.

Larry Fedora: Not only did the soon-to-be-former Southern Miss coach lead the Golden Eagles to the Conference USA title, but he also helped them pick up a bowl invitation. He was able to parlay that into the head-coaching job at North Carolina and managed to talk Southern Miss officials into letting him coach the team in the bowl, which just happens to be in Hawaii on Christmas Eve.

Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos: These teams drafted Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks over the past two seasons that some said possessed games that would not translate in the NFL. But the Panthers' Cam Newton and Broncos' Tim Tebow seem to be doing just fine as starters for their respective teams.

NBA: Some fans were ready to move on to something else about the time the league and its players' association came to an agreement to save the season, starting Christmas Day. Just like seasons before, though, most will become interested in the league at the same time as previous seasons -- during the playoffs.

Washington State: While others wavered toward making the same move, the Cougars offered their head-coaching job to Mike Leach. He's a great fit for the community, team and league, and those are great fits for Leach, too. Many feel he will make WSU competitive again.